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Servitor
Servitors are mindless cybernetic drones created from a fusion of human flesh and robotic technology used to carry out simple, manual tasks across the Imperium of Man. While many Servitors are genetically-engineered, vat-grown clones created by the Adeptus Mechanicus who have their bionic implants installed after "birth," others were once truly human, usually criminals who fell afoul of Imperial law, particularly a person who has offended or damaged the Adeptus Mechanicus. These unfortunate criminals will be sentenced to "Servitude Imperpituis" by the Adeptus Arbites and will be handed over to the Mechanicus' Tech-priests to be mind-wiped, reprogrammed, and cybernetically-enhanced to serve some specific, rudimentary function. Servitors are generally mindless, semi-organic robots, possessing only the most basic of instincts, though some are fully capable of speech if such functions and knowledge are programmed into them. Their brains are programmed to perform only the task they were designed for, whether that be maintenance, construction, or even warfare. The altered and fragmented brain of a Servitor functions poorly unless constantly supervised. Most will eventually go into a state of mindlock, babbling incoherent nonsense as the Servitor tries to assert some form of control over its functions.5 Servitors are created by the Adeptus Mechanicus, and supplied to departments of the Adeptus Terra such as the Administratum and to the Inquisition, as well as to military organizations like the Imperial Guard and various Space Marines Chapters. Servitors make up the vast bulk of the population of Mars and other Forge Worlds of the Mechanicus, where they fulfill the role of workers and laborers.1 There are many types of Servitor, each designed for a certain task. Typical Servitor types include "Technomats" which operate and service various machines, "Holomats" which act as holographic recording devices, "Lexomats" which serve as semi-organic computers with tremendous calculating powers for record-keeping and data storage, and "Drones" which are cybernetic robots - stupid and essentially mindless slaves ideal for menial work and little else.2 Servitors are often used to carry out the more dangerous or laborious duties in the Imperium, such as heavy mining in hostile planetary or asteroid conditions. They also accompany Tech-priest Enginseers on the battlefield with the Imperial Guard, as well as the Space Marines' Techmarines. These types aid in the repair of vehicles or sometimes carry large and dangerous weapons such as plasma cannons. For both forces, the Servitors are practically identical cybernetically, although Space Marine Servitors of some Chapters are created from failed Marine Initiates who were largely braind-dead before their transformation. Perhaps the most feared of all the Servitors are the Praetorian Servitors, a class of heavily-armed and armored Gun Servitor deployed by the Adeptus Mechanicus to guard the Tech-priests and temples dedicated to the Machine God. Common Servitor Classes In game terms there are three important types of Servitor:4 Technical Servitors are a common sight in the Imperium as they are not really intended for use in combat but are very useful in assisting battlefield operations. These Servitors are often referred to as "mono-tasks", being physically augmented and programmed to perform only a single, very specific function. Commonly they are used as load lifters and cranes, but more exotic mono-tasks include the heavy weapon mount and the mobile weapons rack. These are the standard Servitors that accompany a Tech-priest. Combat Servitors are modified mono-task lifter Servitors intended to fight in close melee combat, and they are normally equipped with some form of Power Fist or Power Sword in place of their lifter arms. Gun Servitors are intended to provide fire support for a Tech-priest as he works, and often they will have whole limbs replaced with cybernetically-implanted weapons. Many will have ammunition hoppers mounted somewhere on their bodies so they can lay down continuous curtains of fire without needing to reload. Sources *1:Codex Imperialis (1993), pp. 22, 41, 45 *2:Realm of Chaos: The Lost and the Damned (1990), The Cult Mechanicus *3:http://www.specialist-games.com/assets/emplorwarband.pdf (Explorator Warbands) *4:Codex: Space Marines (4th Edition) *5:Codex: Space Marines (5th Edition) Category:S Category:Space Marines